The Three Worlds
by EchoTaichou
Summary: Asuna is seemingly stuck in an endless cycle. However when she breaks free from it...things are not what it seems. What happened? Read to find out about the three worlds.
1. Yume Sekai (Dream World)

_**AN: This is a re upload of the first one. (Something went wrong and it showed up all code like). Enjoy! (Warning Slight spoilers ahead)**_

 _ **Sword Art Online: Yume no Sekai**_

Yuuki Asuna sat happily in his chair as she watched everyone chat cheerfully. The mood was charmful and upbeat with light, but pretty decorations adorning the walls. Agil's cafe was a perfect place to celebrate a special occasion, which this time was extremely special to her and everyone else.

"Asuuuna!" Lisbeth said and walked up to her handing her a drink, "Thinking about a certain something?" Her teasing voice didn't fail to embarrass Asuna.

"Li….Liz!" she exclaimed and franticly brushed her hair in embarrassment. The movement gave off a gleam in the light and Lizbeth grinned.

"Ah hah! So you are wearing it!" Lizbeth exclaimed, "Can you show me?"

Asuna blushed heavily but lifted her left hand and showed off her fingers. Shining brightly on the ring finger was a gold ring. On top of the gold ring was a beautifully encrusted diamond.

"Uwah….so beautiful." Lisbeth muttered as she looked appreciatively at the engagement ring. "I know this is a bit overdue Asuna, but congratulations on your engagement!"

Asuna yet again blushed intensively, "Th-thanks Liz."

"And we were all wondering when he will get the courage to propose to you." A voice came from behind Lisbeth. Sinon peeked her head out grinning, "He was a nervous wreck before the day of the engagement. It took everyone of us reassuring him along with a extra push from Alice to convince him not to back out." Sinon said shaking her head.

"Really? Kirito-kun really was that nervous?" Asuna questioned smiling mischievously eager to hear about a tale of a nervous Kazuto.

"OI! Stop telling Asuna my embarrassing tales Liz!"

"Oh? You sure I can tell her about how you literally broke five-"

"Stop!"

Sinon gave out her famous devil grin, "Or how about how he-"

"Sinon, not you too!" Kazuto exclaimed shaking his hands wildly.

Asuna giggled and drank the drink she got from Liz. This is perfect she thought, I get to spend the rest of my life with the man I love, and always be together with my family like friends.

* * *

Asuna woke up in her bed as the morning radio turned on acting as her radio. They had a long but enticing night yesterday. However the events that occured left her tired, "Why did a drunk Klein have to kiss Rinko-san on the cheek? It caused a whole bit of a chaos…" She thought groggily.

Nonetheless the moment she raised her left hand and gazed at the engagement from Kazuto adorning the ring finger, her worries and weariness slipped away like it never existed. "I'm going to get married to Kazuto-kun…." she whispered to herself then she let out a squeal of delight, "I'm getting married to Kazuto!"

She jumped back into her pillows and rolled around, giggling in glee. After rolling around for several minutes she looked at the time, "Oh! It's almost time for breakfast." She suddenly had a small memory of last night.

"See you at your house around 8 tomorrow Asuna. Lets get some breakfast together." Those words from Kazuto slowly floated into her mind.

"AH! I'm going to be late!" she shouted and burst out of her bed running straight into the shower room.

Thirty minutes later she was dressed and with some little time to spare. She decided to talk to her brother who was on break from business and currently residing in the living room. Walking across the dark hallways, Asuna made her way downstairs and was about to enter the living room when some talking from the other side stopped her.

"Andrew-san….I know you are worried, heck everyone but Kazuto-chan is worried about it. He doesn't seem to notice anything out of place." Yuuki Kouichirou was heard talking on the phone. "My soon to be brother law is pretty dense sometimes."

'Worried? What were they worried about?' Asuna thought to herself and nervously looked out the window. A pitch black raven was perched near the window and its red beaded eyes looked at her curiously.

"Listen Andrew-san let me recount you my memories properly. A few years back my little sister came out of the death game SAO, however she was captured by Sugou and put into Alfheim. There Kazuto went in and rescued her. Next was the Death Gun incident, after that she met Yuuki. Then the events of the Soul Translator and Fluctlight incident occurred. After my sister got engaged to Kazuto and married to him December 13th. Then that fateful incident happened in winter…" Asuna started to hear sobbing and her eyes widened, her brother rarely cried. "Andrew-san…what's going on?"

Feelings of dread started to fill her up. What was going on? It was still a good 6 months month away from the marriage day. What was her brother talking about? She saw a flicker of a memory pass through her mind. A silver truck, shattered glass, a blood curdling scream. She snapped out and took a quiet deep breath. Her mind was still assaulted by questions but she continued to walk away quietly from the living room and to the front door.

Asuna stepped outside and glanced up, the sky had dark clouds and it casted long shadows on the streets. Looking around she saw a figure clad in black leaning on a bike and looking at his phone. "K-Kazuto-kun!" She shouted and ran up to him and hugged the said man tightly.

"Asuna?" he yelped in surprise at the sudden weight on his chest.

"Gomen Kirito-kun…. I just had some horrifying thoughts." Asuna muttered in her lovers chest, a flash of another bloody fragment of memories appeared. This time it was a bloody floor with black tiles, a orange ribbon was lying in a pool of crimson. It disappeared and she shuddered again. Kazuto noticing her shudder, wrapped his arms around her tightly.

"I don't know what happened Asuna but I won't ask you right now. Let's just go and enjoy some breakfast shall we?" He said kindly and she nodded. Kazuto smiled and patted Asuna's head lightly, "Well let's get going then. I'm starving."

* * *

It was well past noon and Asuna was heading over to Shino's place after parting with Kazuto earlier. She shivered slightly as a cool breeze swept past her, and wrapped her scarf around her neck tighter and adjusted her mittens. A light winter music was heard from a nearby open shop.

'Scarf? Mittens….and winter music. Shouldn't it be June?' she wondered to herself as she looked curiously around her. However her senses of touch and sound were not messing around with her. The undeniable chill of winter was present along with the soft melody of the winter music. 'I must be losing it…' she thought and shrugged off the thought that just yesterday was the day Kirito proposed to her which was June, 'I must have lost sense of time during all this excitement.'

She quickly arrived at her destination and approached the door of her best friends room. However just as she was about to knock another fragment of a memory assaulted her mind. It was brief but simple. A blood covered crow, looking at her directly. She shivered again and knocked on the door. After waiting a few seconds, footsteps could be heard from the other side and the door opened up to reveal a smiling Shino.

"Asuna-chan! You should have told me a few hours earlier that you were coming. I would have prepared more stuff for you."

"Shinonon….you already have a lot of stuff ready for me, judging by the smell coming from behind you."

"Eh-heh, never could fool the chef's nose can I." Shino said hugging Asuna lightly. Asuna also hugged her best friend back.

After being invited in, Asuna sat down on the small table as Shino brought out a tray of tea and gourmet looking desserts. "Help yourself Asuna, I have lots more in the fridge."

Saying a quick thank you, Asuna picked out a creamy looking cheesecake. She picked up her fork and after a quiet, "Ittadakimasu." she scooped a generous cut and ate it. Immediately a burst of flavour exploded in her mouth. The cream of the cake was nice and creamy giving up a perfect relationship to the bread like crust of the cake. The light dripping of blueberry syrup complimented itself well with the slightly salty cream cheese. She lightly moaned at the ambrosia like divine cake. She quickly devoured the rest of the cake and sighed contently.

Shino was looking amusedly at Asuna, "You liked it?" Asuna nodded rapidly. "Good I was wondering if the main chef was going to reject my baking."

Asuna's jaws dropped, "You….you made this?!"

Shino gave out an extremely offended look, "What? Did you really expect me to buy a cheesecake from the store? I can make one perfectly fine. I just slightly adjusted Agil's recipe." she huffed and crossed her hands.

"Awww don't be mad at me Shinonon, I was just surprised you can make a divine cake like this." Asuna exclaimed clasping her hands together as an apology. Shino just pouted and looked away.

After several cakes and cups of tea later Asuna found herself chatting happily with Shino. However some things were bothering her. Like when Shino got a faraway look whenever she mentioned the marriage. Or how it was starting to snow lightly outside. Small details that started to agitate her, making it harder for her to focus. What was going on? What are these horrifying memories? Why does it seem that she was looping? No...she wasn't imagining it, she was actually looping. And the person who could maybe answer her questions sat in front of her.

Finally Asuna couldn't hold it in anymore, "Shino...can I ask you something?" she looked at her best friend seriously in the eye, "I want you to answer truthfully Shino."

Shino blinked, "Okay...what is it Asuna?"

"What is going on in this world right now Shino?" Shino looked at her in wide eyes, then it disappeared and she took off her glasses. She picked up a cloth and started cleaning the lenses.

"Asuna...how did you find out about this world?"

"I overheard a conversation. I realized that we were repeating the same time period over and over again. From the day of my engagement till some time after the wedding. However….I can't remember what happened from the day of the wedding." Asuna admitted.

"Asuna….this is someone's dream. We are repeating the same events over and over again." Shino told her putting the glasses back on and tucking the cloth away.

"I don't mind being in someone's dream." Asuna said, "But why would someone have a dream like this? Why would they need to loop the memories of the past? And what was the event that my brother was talking about?" A small panic was starting to form around Asuna's chest.

Shino looked at Asuna sadly, "Asuna….you need to remember. There….there was a disaster."

This ignited the flames of the panic that was welling in Asuna's chest. She scrambled backwards giving out a yell, and knocked the chair she was sitting on over. She clutched the nearby counter as she stepped backwards her breathing heavy. She could only see the bloodied crow, hopping forward towards an orange ribbon in a pool of blood. It's red beaded eyes looking at the ribbon curiously. Then as quick as a hawk it snatched the ribbon and ripped it to shreds.

Asuna lost all her strength in her body and she collapsed onto the floor. She could only see in tunnel vision, focusing on the silverware that was knocked over from the table on the ground.

"Asuna!" Asuna could hear the faraway voice of Shino but due to the tunnel vision couldn't see her best friend. She raised her trembling hands to her face and the clean hands from before were now covered in crimson red. Then just as she saw this, the pain struck.

Like a bullet train hitting her, Asuna felt a wrenching pain in her chest. Like someone reached into her chest and grabbed her heart with a vise. It was crushing her heart, twisting it, pulling it, tightening its hold. All she could feel was pain.

"Asuna! Asuna what are you doing!" She could hear Shino shouting at her. But she didn't care, the pain was still there. But with it she heard a distinct melody. One that was offering her salvation. Despite the pain the melody was giving her a solution. A way out, and she damn well knew through the pain it was her saviour. She gave a small smile.

"Asuna! NO! DROP THE KNIFE NOW!" She heard Shino screaming, "Don't Asuna! We all need you!"

Asuna only ignored her and focused on getting rid of the pain. She gave out a small apology to everyone. Especially Kazuto and Yui. 'Sorry everyone.'

Then she saw black.

 **Constructive criticism and nice reviews will be appreciated.**


	2. Genjitsu Sekai (Illusion World)

**AN: Chapter two of three of this fan fiction. Enjoy! (Warning: Slight Spoilers)**

 _ **Genjitsu Sekai**_

Kirigaya Asuna walked happily with her recently married husband, Kirigaya Kazuto. They had just finished their one month honeymoon and were back in Tokyo. She hummed softly as she held onto Kazuto's hand, looking around at the familiar landscape of Tokyo.

"You know Kazuto-kun? As much as I liked America, I kind of want to go to Okinawa next time." She murmured, leaning her head onto his shoulder. He chuckled and pat her head with his hand.

"Sorry Asuna, I'll make sure we go to Okinawa next time." He replied smiling, still patting her head. Asuna softly laughed and nudged her shoulder to Kirito's.

"We're here Kazuto-kun, everyone should be waiting for us." Kirito opened the door for Asuna.

"Well Kirigaya-hime," he said bowing dramatically, "You should enter first, your highness." This didn't fail to embarrass Asuna who blushed and scurried in, a laughing Kazuto following her.

"Hey! The main couple is back!" Klein shouted. Immediately, a crowd of their friends surrounded them. Kirito was dragged away by the guys to the right. And Asuna was dragged away to the left with the girls.

Kirito talked to Klein, Agil, and a new friend they recently met called Kifuya. Kifuya was the carbon copy of Kazuto, or a bit younger and smaller version of him. Recently, Kazuto found out his real parents had one more child when he was 5 which was Kifuya. However the records were lost and Kifuya was adopted by the Arita family. Kazuto's younger brother's ingame name was Graphite Edge, and he proved to hold one of the fastest reaction speed next to Kazuto. He also was a tester for Kazuto's new development, the "Neurolinker".

Asuna distinctly heard Kifuya talk about how he was going to have a younger brother or sister, and that his adopted mother and father were going to name him Haruyuki.

"Mama!" she heard a loud cry behind her. Asuna froze, did Kikouka and Rinko-san finally do it? Did they…. Asuna slowly turned around. A sight to behold greeted her. A young girl with tender brown eyes with long and sleek black hair looked cutely at her. She was dressed in a yellow sweater and red pants fitting her figure.

"Yui-chan!" Asuna cried and rushed up to her daughter, embracing her daughter with soft welcoming arms. The cry made Kirito turn around from his table and look at Asuna, his eyes widening when he saw his daughter being hugged by Asuna.

"Yui…." he muttered as he slowly got off his seat.

"Papa!" His daughter shouted, her eyes filling up with tears.

"Yui!" he cried back and rushed forward, embracing both Asuna and Yui in one hug. Soon all three of them were in tears, crying happily.

The door opened up behind them and Kikouka and Rinko stepped inside, "It took us quite a bit of time Kirigaya-kun, however since we owe you two a lot, we figured this would be the most ideal wedding present for the wedding we couldn't make it to."

"Kikouka….Rinko-san….Thank you so much." Kazuto whispered.

"No….you deserved this much Kirigaya-kun. This is the least we can do." Kikouka replied.

"Well you know what this calls for, CELEBRATION!" Klein yelled holding his cup up. Everybody yelled in agreement, and Kazuto, Asuna and Yui just held hands not willing to let each other go.

"I'm very happy to be with mama and papa." Yui said softly, "However I wish that sometime in the future to have a younger brother or sister." Asuna smiled softly, lightly stroking Yui's hair with her free hand.

"Yui-chan, let's grant that wish in a few years ok? Right, now lets just enjoy our time with the three of us." Asuna brushed Kirito's hand and smiled at him.

-A few hours later-

Kazuto, Yui, Asuna, Sinon, Lizbeth, Silica, Klein and Alice were all going to the park to have a small walk in it. It was still seven and cool winter air with the small warmth of spring fluttered past. Everyone was chatting lively and Kirito was giving Yui a piggy back ride. Making the little girl squeal with delight whenever he picked up speed and ran ahead.

Deciding to head back to the Cafe after an half hour of walking in the park, the group waited at the street, silently waiting for the light to turn green to cross. Asuna adjusted the loose orange ribbon on her shirt, taking it off to readjust it later at the cafe. The traffic light turned green and the group of eight started to cross the street.

While they crossed, Asuna could only think of how perfect her life was. A perfect husband, a perfect daughter, loving friends, and a bright future. She smiled faintly, failing to hear the sound of screeching tires. She heard cries of panic and whirled around. Her heart froze in fear as she saw a silver truck speeding towards her. She could only stay frozen as it came closer to her. Then in less then a second, she was sent flying. Her body tumbled on the ground. The orange ribbon was lying in front of her. Lying in a pool of blood with shattered glass and a smoking truck impaled in the wall near her. Her whole body was blossoming with pain, she heard a crackle of fire. And she turned just in time to see the engine of the truck explode and Kazuto's face looking at her.

Silence. An eerie atmosphere was enveloping the silence like a mist.

Asuna was alone, standing alone in a quiet, deserted city. The time was almost impossible to tell. A dark shade of gray overlapped the city, giving it a dull colour, the street lights were giving a dim lighting to the streets but the thin mist made it close to nothing.

The city was devoid of life, no one or nothing was in plain sight and not a single sound could be heard. She took a light step forward and sound echoed through the city. She shivered and kept walking, her footsteps seemingly loud in the mute city. She moved slowly, her body having the feeling of moving underwater. At one point she stopped to look at a glass case. Her reflection was staring back at her, and she was momentarily startled at that gaunt, pale looking figure staring back at her. "Hmm", she thought. She looked away for just a moment, but then realized she was back in her KoB outfit. Although a bit startled at the sudden change of costume, she sighed with a sense of nostalgia. "I remember that day really well...the day Heathcliff defeated Kazuto in a duel. Then he had to wear the colors of my guild. He looked pretty good in a non-black attire…", she thought to herself. She reminisced about that day...the day her world changed forever. The day she truly realized she loved Kazuto, tears began to well in her eyes. She violently punched the glass case, shattering it. Shards of glass cut into her hand, but the pain was numb in comparison to the true pain she felt deep in her heart.

"Kirito-kun..."

Her mind began to race through her memories, the stores acting like screens for her memories.

The nights on floor 22. The murder mystery they solved together. When they met their beloved daughter. The memories kept racing...and racing...through her mind.

After what seemed like hours of walking and reminiscing in memories, Asuna ended up on a familiar looking street. It was the same street that they were crossing when the truck came rushing to them. A large tent was set up on the street, yellow "DO NOT ENTER" tape surrounding it. She merely stepped over the tape, her red and white KoB uniform fluttering. She slowly pushed aside the flaps of the tent.

This was it….. the truth could be revealed here. She stepped inside and almost retched. Blood…..too much blood was lying on the ground. The metal remains of the truck scattered on the floor. A street lamp had fallen and Asuna saw something out of the corner of her eye. She walked over to the lamp and picked up a blood covered orange ribbon.

The truth hit her like a dozen bricks. With trembling hands she clutched the orange ribbon to her chest. She wanted to cry….she wanted to be comforted. However in this desolate place, a place of pure despair, she didn't have anyone. There was no one to comfort her.

'So this is what happened…..'

Her knees were trembling, wanting nothing more than to just collapse.

'This….this is the truth, it was me making the loops…..it was me making everyone get stuck in my memories. How….how many times have I lived this dream. How many times did I loop before it all came apart?'

She couldn't believe it, but the truth was in front of her. Her brain was telling her that. However she just couldn't accept it. How could one simply accept their own death?

She turned around to leave when a sudden scraping noise came from the back of the tent. She slowly turned around. A black clad figure with a green ethereal form slowly appeared from the darkness in the tent. It held a green lantern with screaming souls inside and the figure slowly started to spin a sickle handing on a chain.

Asuna bolted, her natural instinct of fear overtaking her. She ran, and ran, and ran, not stopping, not looking back.

"Asuna over here!" she heard an all too familiar voice cry out. Yuuki was standing there with her hand stretched out. Asuna jumped, feeling the adrenaline of flying. Her hand was reaching for Yuuki's smaller hands, and slowly but surely she grasped it.

And everything went black again.

"Asuna…..asuna!" Asuna was shaken awake by Shino. She bolted up, her heart still racing in adrenaline, her fear making her flinch at the concerned look. "You okay Asuna? We are almost at the hot springs. Kazuto asked me to wake you up while he went to wake up Yui."

'Was it all a dream? Was it all just a silly nightmare?' Asuna shook her head mentally, 'No...she remembered.' the look in Shino's eyes told her the truth.

However….she really had the closest incident with Death himself. The extent of the realization and truth was revealed. However this time….she had a shoulder to lean on.

She embraced Shino desperately and seeked warmth, the warmth that her cold corpse-like body shouldn't hold. And she began sobbing into the slightly younger girl's shoulder.

"Asuna?" she questioned.

"..."

Giving out a small sigh, Shino's eyes turned grieved as she slowly stroked the chestnut-haired girl's back. Her eyes reflecting the misery of the unforgivable truth.

"Shhh Asuna, it's going to be fine. Everything is going to be fine."

_

"Uwahhh." Asuna gave out a soft cry as she stepped inside the large room they rented for the hot springs. Even as she knew deep down, that she was gone from this world. She knew that this would be the final time they could ever talk together as a group. A final time they could stay and have fun. Asuna was going to make it as memorable as possible.

"Hahaha you like it Asuna?" Kazuto laughed, "It took me Klein and the efforts of Yui to find this place."

"Oh, Yui-chan helped too?" Asuna asked, kneeling down to her daughter, she ruffled her hair, "You did a good job Yui-chan."

Her daughter smiled happily, "Yes!"

They had an absolutely great time at the hot springs. While Agil couldn't come, Klein, Lisbeth, Silica, Alice, Sinon and the Kirigaya family all attended. Visiting the ski resort and having a full on snow fight. The light February weather brought out a warm atmosphere. They all visited the small amusement park, however none of the rides besides the Ferris wheel were working.

"Lets all get on one car!" Asuna cried out and with nods of agreement, the group clambered into the Ferris wheel car. They all gasped at the landscape when they got to the very top of the Ferris wheel.

The snow white mountains overlooked the distinct outline of Tokyo, its powdered trees slowly shivering in the slight wind.

"It's beautiful." Silica murmured and the other members silently agreed. Asuna clasped onto Kazuto's hand and leaned onto his shoulder - one of her favourite things to do. Yui closed her eyes and leaned into Kazuto's other shoulder.

"It's going to end soon." Yui muttered.

"I know Yui, but good things always have to come to an end." Kazuto muttered back, not realizing the impact of his words on Asuna. She leaned more into Kazuto's shoulder. This is how it should be, she with the love of her life, the daughter of her dreams, and the friends that she always wanted. Spending their eternity in this place. Just enjoying each others company.

However no matter how much she wanted that. It couldn't happen. They were supposed to be having fun. This was potentially their final moments together.

"Hey guys, after this ride ends. Let's head back. And maybe take a bath in the hot springs and eat dinner?" She asked them.

The hot springs was refreshing, each of them relaxing into the natural warmth of the water and coming out renewed.

Dinner was served in a traditional Japanese manner. The girls and boys both dressed in yukata and ate dinner on a low table with mats as seats.

Amazingly Yui was able to put on her yukata perfectly despite the sheer difficulty of putting it on. Everyone was sitting down chatting animatedly with the person next to them. Asuna herself was in a conversation with Kazuto, however she noticed that something seemed…..off about everyone.

After dinner was served, a special announcement was made by the people working in the hot springs that they will have a fireworks show outside. Everyone crowded near the entrance gazing into the night sky. The first boom issued and a show of lights lit up the sky.

Yui gasped and her eyes twinkled in delight.

A second boom echoed across the mountain and another shower of lights lit up the sky. Kazuto wrapped his arms around her shoulder bringing her close to his chest. Tears started to well up in her eyes.

Surrounded by the people she loved and held on dearly, Asuna couldn't help but feel warm and comfortable, even as precious memories flashed through her mind,

When she first met Kirito, his concerned eyes offering help to her.

How hard they struggled to beat the game.

Meeting Lisbeth the first time and giving her encouragement to continue being an blacksmith.

Meeting her daughter Yui for the first time.

The hardships they all went through in what she liked to call the tale of the Mother's Rosario.

The horrors that the world of the Underworld held. However, also remembering the good times that came out of it.

She had come far with everyone. She had come this far because of everyone. And now….her journeys….her adventures...her life was over. They could only continue on without her.

Her tears began to fall and she began to cry loudly. Not caring about holding it back in anymore.

"I...I don't want to die!"

The truth….these five words changed the atmosphere of the group in an instant. Gone was the warm feeling. It was replaced with the cool winter breeze between the group.

"I don't want to go! I don't want to leave everyone behind! I've just started a good relationship with everyone here! We just started this life….how can it come to an end like this? My life just began! I….I…." Asuna trailed off….the reality of her words kicking into herself. She was going to die. She desperately wanted to have one more day….one more day to spend her time with her loved ones. But even then….it wouldn't be enough. It would never be enough.

She wanted to live….she wanted to continue living with everyone else.

Confusion was in mostly everyone's faces. Only Shino and Klein looked grim.

'Confusion? Did they not know? Or is it...' her thoughts trailed off, the sudden confusion giving her a slight hope.

However Shino yanked her away from Kirito, held onto Asuna's shoulders and stared at Asuna's eyes. Asuna quickly averted her eyes.

"Asuna...look at me" Shino said and Asuna met the steely hazel eyes of Shino. She didn't like that look, she wanted to look away. She slowly trailed down Shino's figure and stared at her yukata.

Wait a second…..she finally noticed the unusual thing she felt from dinner. She hurriedly looked around at everyone else, it was the same.

Asuna wore her yukata left to right, the correct way to wear one. This was the way the yukata should be worn. It should never be worn the other way, right to left, unless in one situation. It should only be worn right to left on bodies of dead people. On someone who passed away, just before they were cremated. The yukata on the body should be worn right to left.

Kazuto, Yui, Klein, Shino, Lisbeth, Alice and Silica. All of them wore their yukata right to left. Shino's fingers were digging into Asuna's shoulders now.

"Asuna!" Asuna turned her horrified eyes to her best friend.

"Asuna please…..you need to remember."

Part 2 of 3 END

 **Constructive criticism and nice reviews will be appreciated.**


	3. Sayonara no Sekai The World of Goodbyes

_**AN: Warning slight spoilers in this story! Enjoy!**_

 _ **Sayonara no Sekai**_

"What...no…." Asuna slowly began backing away, "I don't….I can't." Time was frozen now, nothing was moving. The fireworks were beautifully suspended in the air, snow was frozen midfall, nothing and nobody was moving besides Kazuto, Shino and Yui.

"Asuna please, you can't deny this forever." Shino begged, "You can't run away. You need to face reality. You NEED to remember." Asuna slowly looked down at Shino's hands, which grabbed onto Asuna's hand. It was….cold, lacking of any warmth. She looked at it closer…. it was slightly transparent.

"Shino….?" She muttered quietly, then looked over to Kazuto and Yui. Both of their bodies were also becoming transparent. "Kazuto-kun? Yui-chan?"

Fearing the worst Asuna desperately ran to them and embraced them in a hug, only for her to pass through them. She stumbled into the snow and stared at disbelief at her empty hands. "No…." she whispered clutching the snow tightly, "This can't be true…"

"Mama...please remember." Yui begged, "You can't stay in this dream world forever, you have to remember."

Memories started to flash through her mind, a bloody orange ribbon lay on bloodied floor. The same crow looked at her hauntingly, and its red beaded eyes dragged her into her swirling memories.

-Flashback-

Asuna slowly opened her eyes, a dull ringing noise was echoing in her head. Her vision was a bit blurry but it slowly cleared, revealing a flaming wreckage. She tried to move her body and immediately winced in pain. Her whole left arm was probably broken, her ribs were broken and her left eye was blurry with blood running down her head. However she slowly sat herself up, her eyes staring at bewilderment of the flaming wreckage in her eyes.

"Kazuto...Yui…" she muttered, "What….what happened?"

She tried to stand up but landed on her stomach again in pain. 'My legs….' she thought, 'They are probably broken...' Then she saw him, a tuft of unruly black hair lying on the ground, desperately protecting a small frail body.

"Kazuto-kun! Yui-chan!" she called out and started to crawl towards her family. A few meters away from them however was a limp hand. A girl with long golden hair with once beautiful cobalt eyes, which were now devoid of life stared at her. "A-alice!" she cried out and reached out a hand to touch her face. It was cold.

She scrambled back in shock only to bump into something else. Asuna turned around to find the crushed body of Lisbeth, right next to her was the dead body of Silica.

"No….everyone…."she shook in horror, this wasn't supposed to be happening. Their life just began, it couldn't end like this."Kazuto….KAZUTO!" She crawled desperately towards her husband, ignoring the pain that shot through her body every time she moved.

'Anybody but them….anybody but my family.' she furiously repeated in her head. She quickly reached her two precious family members who were both very near the wreckage, and gently shook the shoulder of her husband.

"Kazuto-kun….Kazuto-kun!" she shouted frantically. He didn't respond and her world shattered around her, "No….no.." Asuna's long held tears started to leak, until it turned into streams.

"A-asuna…" a small whisper called to her.

"Ki-kazuto-kun!" she cried out. Kazuto grinned at her but looked down at his body.

"Gomen Asuna…." he shakily lifted his arm up and the limp body of Yui fell out, "I...I couldn't save her…"

"Yui...yui-chan?" she muttered in shock and lifted her hand up to brush the hair out of her daughters face. It was closed and a large hole was in her chest. Right where the files for Yui was.

"I….I don't think I will last much longer either…" Kazuto whispered out, "The….pole that pierced Yui…." he moved his body a little hissing in pain, however it showed the bloody iron pole sticking out of his right side of his chest.

"Kazuto-kun! Don't move!" Asuna cried out still clutching the dead body of her daughter, how she reached out and grabbed Kazuto's hand.

Kazuto coughed, blood was leaking out from his mouth, "Asuna...I'm sorry...thank you for everything….." he coughed again his eyes dimming, "Goodbye…."

"Kazuto?" Asuna questioned quietly, his hand was limp in his hands. She could hear the the wailing of sirens get nearer, "Kazuto-kun! Please wake up. How…..how am I supposed to go on without you? Please….please…" A hint of disbelief was still lingering in her. This has to be a dream….it couldn't just shatter down like this. Yui, Silica, Lisbeth, Klein, Alice and Kazuto….they weren't supposed to die.

'Look Asuna.' another part of her quietly whispered in her head, 'It's true, everyone is dead. But you got to find Shino, she's the only one you didn't find yet.'

She looked at Kazuto's lightless eyes, and swallowed the urge to start crying and collapse. "No.." she muttered to herself, "They won't want this yet, if Shino is still alive they will want me to do my best to save her." However she couldn't move….Yui's limp body was still tightly clutched to her, she still held Kazuto's hands. But she couldn't move, "Why…" she gasped, "Why did this happen! Why….why….why.."

No matter how hard she tried to contain the urges, she just couldn't hold it in. She cried. She leaned against Kazuto's body, hoping that somehow, divine intervention will help her. She brought Yui's body closer to her and Kazuto, sobbing, hoping that it was just a horrible nightmare. She cried as the ambulance came in, as the paramedics cried out that they found someone. They tried to drag her away from Kazuto and let go of Yui. She tore them off, turning into a furious best. Limping back to her family every time they dragged her off. She would have kept doing this, if not for one person.

"Asuna...let's get you treated. The others won't want to see you like this." Shino quietly stated, Asuna slowly looked at her best friend. Shino's clothes were in tatters, her glasses were gone, probably destroyed in this horrible accident. What shocked her was the huge gash across Shino's left face, her left eye was closed.

"Ah this? Yah, they managed to get me out of underneath the truck a few moments ago. By the way...where is everyone else? Are they in the ambulance?" Shino set a concerned eye at the wreckage, "Is someone still stuck under there?"

Asuna looked at Shino disbelievingly, did she not know? Asuna trembled, her mind flashing back to her dead family and friends. "Shi-shino.." she quietly whispered her tears dripping down her face again.

"Asuna?" Shino questioned.

"Shino….everyone. They're….they're….they're gone!" Asuna cried out tears falling down her face. Shino's concerned expression turned into shock and disbelief.

"What…" Shino muttered.

"They're gone! Dead! Left us! This stupid accident….ruined our lives!" she was sobbing and shouting at Shino now, "Yui-chan, Kazuto and everyone! They are all gone!"

Shino slowly backed away, her body trembling, "No...this can't be true." Asuna looked at Shino sadly, her tears still running down. However as she looked at Shino's face her world flipped over and she fell over. Falling into unconsciousness, the last thing she saw was a black crow pouncing on her orange ribbon.

* * *

Asuna slowly came to on a hospital bed. "What happened?" she muttered to herself holding her head. She looked around the hospital room, she noticed her phone sitting on a stand next to her bed. She slowly reached out and picked it up and noticed the scratches and cracks in the glass.

"Did someone drop it?" she wondered to herself and turned it on after unplugging it from the charger. The screen lit up and she immediately noticed the date. "What? Did some kind of accident happen? It's already three days since me and Kazuto came back from our honeymoon…" She checked her messages and was shocked to see more than 80 emails.

"What happened while I was unconsciousness?" she murmured and opened one of the emails, "What? What are all these I'm sorry emails?" she quickly scrolled through them, all of them emails labeled, I'm sorry for your loss to I send you my condolences.

The door to her room slid open and a nurse stepped in. Surprisingly it was a nurse she knew very well, "Nurse Aki-san!" she cried out in surprise.

"Oh, Asuna-san! I see you are awake. How are you feeling?" Nurse Aki asked, quietly closing the door behind her.

"Not too bad. Although I can't seem to remember what happened the last few days?" Asuna closed her eyes, trying to remember again but failed. She looked at Nurse Aki again, "Can you tell me what is going on?"

Nurse Aki looked like she aged a few decades, her eyes looked tired and she slowly took off her glasses. "Asuna-san….may I sit down? I feel like I can explain it better after we sit down." Asuna nodded and Nurse Aki pulled up the chair next to Asuna and sat next to her. She reached out and clasped Asuna's hand.

"Asuna-san, you were brought in into this hospital a few days ago. You were caught in a car accident and broke a few bones and got a minor concussion. However we predicted you might have some minor amnesia of the event. Most likely a minor case of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder or for short PTSD." Nurse Aki informed Asuna.

"PTSD? Did something bad happen?" Asuna asked fearfully.

"Asuna-san…" Nurse Aki said looking down, tears starting to fall on Asuna's hand. "Kirigaya Kazuto, Kirigaya Yui, Schuberg Alice, Shinozaki Rika, Ayano Keiko and Tsuboi Ryoutarou were all declared dead on site."

Asuna froze, "W-what…."

"Asuna-san….your friends and family are dead. You and Asada Shino-san are the only survivors."

Asuna slowly gazed at her hands, the scenery abruptly changed, a bloody hand replacing it and a single crow looking at her. "No….no no no no no. Iya….IYAAAA!" she screamed and pushed Nurse Aki away making her stumble. Asuna hastily got off the bed ignoring the stabbing pain and backed away from Nurse Aki.

"No...Kazuto-kun, Yui-chan and the other's can't die. You're lying….YOU'RE LYING!" she screamed at smashed her hand into a nearby vase. The precious china shattered into pieces and sliced into Asuna's hand. Alice's blank eyes stared at her from the vase. "No no no no…." Another memory flash and Kazuto's impaled body entered her mind. All strength left her body and she collapsed into a pile onto the ground.

"Asuna-san!" Nurse Aki shouted at Asuna and rushed up to her, a small first aid kit already in her hands.

"Ka-kazuto-kun…." Asuna muttered.

Gomen Asuna….I wasn't able to save her…. Kazuto's voice echoed past her.

"Yui-chan…" Asuna slowly began to sob, her sobs turned into wails and Nurse Aki looked at her sympathetically. Asuna clutched her hand desperately to her chest, weeping and slowly dying in the inside. Her heart felt like it was ripped up into a million pieces. Kazuto was dead, Yui was dead, she had nothing to live for anymore.

"No Asuna...you have to live…" a quiet voice reached her ears.

"Kazuto-kun!?" Asuna cried out in surprise and hurriedly wiped her tears away and looked around.

"Asuna...we will always be near you. Protecting you. Looking over you. Live our lives for us. Don't you dare come to us this early….."

"But how! How will I be able to live through my life without you? It just began!" Asuna shouted desperately.

"Remember Asuna…..live your life to the fullest. Live it to the fullest for all of our sakes…" the voice presumably Kazuto's faded away.

"I….I understand Kazuto-kun….but let me….let me cry for now." Asuna muttered in sorrow.

A warm pair of arms enveloped Asuna's body. Nurse Aki was done bandaging Asuna's cut up hand. "Asuna-san….I understand you are feeling distressed and emotionally painful. However, Shino-san and I am still here for you. Suguha-san visited earlier, she was very worried about you too." The arms held Asuna tighter, "However it is okay to cry Asuna-san. Just let it all out...I'm here for you."

Asuna's eyes widened and tears welled up in her eyes again. This time, instead of crying alone….she cried in another person's arms. Nurse Aki's warm arms was like a protective blanket. Like a mother comforting a child. Similar to….Kazuto's embrace. With this very thought, she wept into Nurse Aki's arms.

* * *

A day has passed since Asuna woke up from her slumber at the hospital. Shino was still apparently bedridden. Refusing to get up, eat, drink or even communicate with the other doctors and nurses of the hospital. It was very alarming to the doctors and they asked Asuna to try and talk Shino out of her depressed and stubborn state.

Currently Asuna was being pushed on a wheelchair by Nurse Aki. Heading to the room KI-10, which was currently Shino's room.

"We are here." Nurse Aki announced and stepped back. Asuna slowly raised her hand and rapped on the door.

"Shinonon?" Asuna asked quietly, no reply came from the other side. "Shino...I'm going to go in." Asuna slowly opened the door. To her small surprise a thin curtain blocked her view. Asuna decided to speak to Shino from behind the curtain.

"Shino...I know you are shocked about everyone's death-" Asuna began speaking to Shino from the other side of the curtain. She spoke for nearly an hour, spilling her heart out in her small speech. Trying to inflict a response, or even a slightest sound from Shino.

However despite her efforts, she got nothing, not even a slight noise from her best friend. Asuna sadly turned away, slowly wheeling herself back to the door. She glanced at the clock before she exited the room. '5:38 p.m, the sun should be setting soon'. She thought to herself and turned around to close the door. She froze in shock.

Even if the curtain was drawn the sunlight of the setting sun was shining through the window on the opposite side. The light casting some beautiful shadows in the room, both entrancing and mystical. However that was not what caught the attention of Asuna. What caught the attention of Asuna was a shadow of something dangling. It was neither a spider or a piece of cloth. It was the shadow of a person dangling from a rope around his or her neck.

Asuna, fearing for the worst, immediately wheeled to the curtain as fast as possible and flung it aside.

"This….this can't be." she whispered to herself. Dangling on the rope was Asada Shino herself, her glasses lay shattered on the floor and the noose was tied tightly around the neck. Asuna could only stare in shock for a few seconds, until a small jolt ran through her body prompting her into action.

"Nurse Aki-san! COME IN HERE QUICK!" she screamed and stood up, lifting Shino's body up to loosen the hold on the rope. The sound of frantic footsteps could be heard as Nurse Aki burst into the room. She looked shocked for a second before quickly rushing up to Asuna and helped her get Shino off the noose.

"Asuna, call the doctor from the emergency phone over there. Tell them we have a possible near death patient." she barked out. Asuna quickly complied, calling the doctors and after getting a quick confirmation of them coming she headed back over to Nurse Aki.

Nurse Aki was checking Shino's pulse, "Heart failure, most likely caused by asphyxiation. She's still warm….Patient entered cardiac arrest!" she muttered to herself, "Asuna grab the A.E.D from the shelf over there. Get the starting mechanism going." Nurse Aki removed Shino's gown, exposing her naked body and stuck on the pads that Asuna handed to her. "I'm clear, you're clear, everyone clear. Charge!" Shino's body gave a slight jolt before settling down. Nurse Aki checked her breathing before starting to press down on Shino's chest. Pressing her mouth onto Shino, she breathed two times before resuming her chest pumps.

Asuna could only look on dreadfully looked on at Shino's still body. 'Please...Kazuto-kun. Don't take Shino away from me…' A few doctors and nurses burst into the room, quickly assessing the situation and into action.

However after a few minutes of using a defibrillator and constant CPR, the doctor stepped back and shook his head sadly. He faced Asuna.

"I'm sorry Yuuki-san, your friend has passed on." Asuna bowed her head, and stared sadly at Shino's face. It had a look of peace and tranquility.

"Shino….why did you go so far to even commit suicide?" she heard footsteps, not the heavy ones that the doctors and nurses have. Light footsteps, the footsteps of an athlete was echoing through the solemn halls. Asuna turned around to see Suguha standing quietly in the doorway. It looked like Suguha cried the whole time for the past few days, grieving the loss of her friends and family.

"A-asuna-san…" Suguha slowly walked up to Asuna and embraced her tightly. "U...u...u" she sobbed. Asuna slowly raised her hand, her own tears starting to form in her eyes. She raised her hand as she patted Suguha's head. Both of them grieving for their loved ones.

-Flashback End-

Asuna looked down at the snow, her tears flowing uncontrollably onto the cold ground.

"Asuna... Do you understand now? It's not you who passed away, it's us…." Shino stated quietly, looking at her with sad eyes.

"Why…..why?!" she stood up and stared tearfully at Shino, "Why did you leave me? We could have worked through this together…."

Shino looked at the falling snow, "I wanted to escape the pain….the suffering...everything." she muttered quietly, "The doctors told me that I will never be able to see with my left eye again. Then the fact that everyone else was dead….I guess I didn't really think straight. I fell into depression, didn't want to speak, didn't want to eat or drink. I already prepared the noose before you entered the room. I listened to you speak, however….at the end...I decided to end my life. Escaping into death from all the misery and pain. I'm sorry Asuna…."

"...Baka...we could have worked it out you know. But...but you just had to die…" Asuna sobbed. She felt a transparent warmth wrap around her body.

"Mama...Yui doesn't want to leave you too. Yui wants to live happily with mama and papa. But...I don't want mama to die yet. It's not time for you to join us yet mama…." Yui's angelic voice whispered softly into her ear. "I know it's too much but don't cry mama." Yui reached out and wiped her mother's tears away.

"Y...Yui-chan…" Asuna whispered wrapping her own arms around Yui softly. Afraid that she will pass through her daughter.

Another pair of transparent arms wrapped itself around Asuna. "Gomen Asuna….it was supposed to be a happy marriage. I didn't expect things to end so fast…" The air around them started to shimmer, and the area slowly changed into the peaceful area of Danac. The place where Asuna slept next to Kirito for the first time in the 59th floor in Aincrad. The winter atmosphere was gone and was replaced by a warm summer breeze. Kirito the Black Swordsman, Sinon the Ice Sniper and Yui smiled and walked over to a familiar tree and motioned for her to follow them.

Asuna looked down at herself and was surprised to find herself in her Asuna the Flash attire. She walked over and sat down next to Kirito, and Yui plopped down next to her. Sinon also sat down not too far away from the family of three.

"This place is nice isn't it? Sinon murmured and lightly stroked her Hecate II fondly. Staring at the slowly setting sun, she then turned to Asuna, "It's almost the time for our farewell Asuna."

Asuna's eyes widened, "Wait! There's so many things I have to tell you guys!" she reached out to Kirito who was beginning to stand up. Yui who was smiling sadly, jumped on her father's back.

"Asuna…..live your life to the fullest. Remember…..we are always with you." Kirito said smiling back at her affectionately. All three of their bodies started to shine and fade away.

"No...don't go!" Asuna cried out, standing up and chasing after them. She eventually reached them and she tried to embrace Kirito in a hug. Determined to never let go and stay with him forever. However the moment her fingers touched Kirito, all three of them burst into fragments. The particles floating down and shattering, blowing away through the wind.

"Goodbye Asuna…." she heard seven voices resound throughout the clearing. Asuna landed on her knees and pressed her hand onto her face. Sobbing again, the world glowed once and disappeared.

* * *

Asuna woke up to her silent bedroom. She then quietly removed the portable Soul Translator off from her head. She looked up at the ceiling and pondered for a few seconds, listening to the sound of rain falling and rethinking her life. She gave out a light sob, "Kazuto-kun….what am I supposed to do?"

Asuna got off the bed and headed downstairs, hoping that maybe, just maybe that she will hear the energetic voice of Yui greeting her. Or a cheerful Kazuto giving her a kiss and asking what was for breakfast. Instead, a dull silence was stretched through the house.

She poured herself a cup of coffee that Agil made her last night which she brought home, Caffe Shakerato, Kazuto's favourite drink besides the spicy ginger ale at Agil's cafe. She looked outside, the sun was just beginning to rise and it revealed a beautiful day break. It's vivid colours dancing through the drops of water falling out of the sky. She looked on mournfully out the window. Kazuto's words was echoing in her mind. 'Live for all of us...I guess my time in that world will be delayed then.' she thought to herself.

"Starting tomorrow….I will live my life to the best I can. However today….today I will just mourn and drink a cup for you my friends and family." she muttered and silently offered a toast to the heavens.

The world was a cruel place. Taking away the loved ones of many with diseases, accidents, murders, suicides and death. However, while cruel, it is also a beautiful world. Even at its darkest times, it can shine a ray of hope through the rain. The world….is not a world of dreams, it is reality…..it is the world of goodbyes.

Sayonara no sekai….the world of truth and goodbyes.

~End of PART 3 out of 3~

 **Constructive criticism and nice reviews will be appreciated. (Even if its crying ones.)**

 **Peace! ~Echo-Taichou**


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